Do you find yourself dealing with critical issues and challenging perspectives in the workplace?
There were the themes for this year’s European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC) Global Annual Conference.
All Things IC are members of the EMCC and regularly provide 1-2-1 support for clients across the globe. Rachel and Caroline are mentors, and Dan is a qualified and accredited coach.
Dan attended the conference a few weeks ago on behalf of All Things IC and shares his reflections.
This year, with the theme of critical issues and challenging perspectives, we focused on how, as coaches and mentors, we can better support our leaders. This topic is often discussed when we speak with clients in our 1-2-1 support sessions.
Throughout the three days, I had many discussions with fellow coaches and mentors that related closely to the role of internal communicators. I’ve shared a few that I believe you, as internal communicators, will find helpful.
How comfortable do you feel about the future?
Peju Abebajo, experienced CEO and Board Director, provided her insights on ‘Equipping the labour force of the future’ and asked:
How comfortable do you think your clients are about the future?
Considering this question for our organisations, how well are we prepared to help our stakeholders?
Whether it’s Senior Leadership team members, line managers or colleagues, we can help prepare them for the future. This is even more important in change communications, where more emotion is often experienced.
We often advise clients to list their known knowns and known unknowns when planning change communications. This approach can help you speak with different colleague groups to understand their concerns about the future.
You can download our worksheet to help. Over time, more of your known unknowns should become known knowns.
Research from the World Economic Forum shows that by 2027, 44% of workers’ core skills will change. As communicators, coaches, and strategic advisors, we must continually examine our skills and knowledge. The Profession Map from the Institute of Internal Communication (IoIC) is a valuable tool, providing a framework for identifying skills and knowledge gaps.
Step into the arena and do things differently
Lucy D’Orsi, Chief Constable of the British Transport Police, gave the opening session on day two. Her presentation on cultural reform, understanding existing cultures, feeling the organisation, prioritising her findings, and collecting unsanitised insights was refreshing.
Hearing a leader speak about the importance of internal communications and its role in helping deliver a new strategy and transformation programme made me smile as the internal communicator in the room.
One quote at the end stood out for me:
You need to know what your brand is, even if you don’t like it.
This might sound odd initially, but knowing how our stakeholders view us is necessary to be a strategic internal communicator. It doesn’t mean we have to change, as it’s important to be ourselves, but Lucy shares that ‘you might need to do a counter-narrative if there are some parts of your brand you don’t like’.
Exploring personal branding in 1-2-1 sessions can help you reflect on how you are seen and how you want to be seen and discover what this means when it comes to looking for a new career opportunity.
Mind over mountains
The closing keynote by Alex Staniforth, Founder of the charity Mind Over Mountains spoke openly about ‘wearing the label of a failure’ and the barriers we place on ourselves regarding self-limiting beliefs.
He spoke about how coaching can help you focus on what you’re stepping towards and away from. You don’t need to know all the steps. You just have to start and find the way. We can reach points in our lives where we feel overwhelmed with everything happening and not able to see the next step.
As a coach, I loved his ethos about the power of nature and the benefits it can bring.
Walking with someone side by side means you’re looking in the same direction together rather than facing each other.
Keeping this perspective in mind when working with stakeholders who have a different perspective from ours can positively impact our relationships with them.
Final reflections
I’ll leave you with the photo below of Alex sharing something that I believe is important for us all to remember. I’ve been asked before, ‘What do I need to change to be more resilient at work?’ or ‘How do we help our colleagues be more resilient to the pressures of changes at work?’
My personal belief is that if we’re in a position where training and awareness don’t always solve the issue, the organisation needs to change, and that’s not in our control.
Dan.
Dan with members of the European Mentoring and Coaching Council UK
Receive confidential 1-2-1 support with All Things IC
Whether you’re new to the internal comms profession or have decades of experience, we can provide confidential 1-2-1 support. Rachel, Caroline and Dan all regularly mentor clients on a 1-2-1 basis, creating a safe and confidential space to help you work through a particular challenge. Dan is also an accredited and qualified coach.
Let us know what’s on your mind, and we’ll arrange a free consultation call to discuss how we might help. All our 1-2-1 support plans are bespoke to your individual and professional development needs.
Want to help your team with their professional development?
Have you taken on responsibility for a new team or completed a restructure and don’t know where to start?
We can create a safe space for your team to focus on specific areas of their professional development. By having our support working with each member, we can also focus on the wider needs of the team, helping to bring them together.
We can work confidentially with you and your team, including group sessions, 1-2-1 calls, and profiling tools to help individuals and the team reach their goals.